SHO/WHO Practice Question?

[Chris Rhines]

Most USPSA matches, especially club-level matches, don't have much required SHO/WHO shooting. But the USPSA Classifiers frequently do. Short version, I want my GM card, and I need better SHO/WHO skills to get it.

My one-handed slow fire accuracy is quite good. I need to work more on speed and recoil management.

-C

[JHC]

Ken based that "triage" of training priority based on a pretty extensive study of FBI gunfight/shooting database incl vids of many events. He didn't push the issue, like most of his lessons, he puts out there his take on things and encouraged us to take what we found value in, and file away the rest.

I don't think he intended to dissuade advanced shooters from developing WHO. Just a matter of perspective.

[HeadHunter]

I sometimes do long SHO/WHO sessions but I usually put a little of both in every session.

When you last practiced is more important than how much you last practiced. --TG

[GJM]

This argument again?

It seems that every time someone in the training community argues that a technique is highly unlikely to happen in a gunfight, that the retort is always "gun fights are very unlikely too!" I suck at finite math; however, finite math did teach me that whenever there is a "and then" in the equation, the odds are lowered even farther. For example - "A man was involved in a gunfight, and then he had to use his weak hand to defend his life." The odds go from .5% (getting in a gun fight) to 0.005% (using your weak hand in a gun fight). Obviously, those numbers are arbitrary, but the point is the same. I'm all for training your weak hand, but it all comes down to available resources and priorities. If you have 60,000 rounds of ammo per year and 14-20 hours a week to practice, then by all means, train weak hand only shooting for 300-500 rounds per week. However, if you are like 99% of the population and have limited time and resources, it is probably best to prioritize your skills appropriately.

Northern Red (some very high speed dudes who have been in numerous gun fights themselves), recently talked about spending time training for the 1% instead of focusing on the 99% that is likely to happen. They referred to weak hand shooting as 1%.

GJM, I want you to know I'm not calling you out whatsoever and mean absolutely no disrespect at all. My post may sound harsh and that is unintentional, it wasn't directed at you.

To answer the OP's question, I train SHO every session and WHO once or twice a week.

GOP, if shooting support hand only compromised my ability to practice two hand shooting, I would absolutely agree with you. However, between the SIRT pistol to practice dry firing support hand, and the Smith .22 revolver, my support hand training costs almost nothing, does not tire me out mentally since the .22 has almost no overpressure, and is easy on my hands, wrists and elbows, since the 317 weighs and recoils so little. I would even argue that the trigger control practice from support hand only shooting improves my finesse free style, but I have no hard data to back that up.

I think the reason becoming a GM, as Chris points out, requires standards with a mastery of one hand shooting, is an expert pistol shooter is expected to be expert in shooting with any hand combination. I would like to think the goal for many of us here is to shoot at that level.

To HH's point, recency of practice means a lot with support hand shooting, and I believe Todd essentially said the same thing in his training journal. I think that while a lot of rounds may have to be expended to develop support hand skills, a more modest number of rounds is necessary to maintain those skills. I would much rather keep the support hand skills than have to require them.

Finally, the support hand proficiency may be a matter of personal vanity to me. My average test score at Rogers last time was 105. I want my average to be 115, and the easiest way to accomplish that is to chop away at the 8 points, on average, I dropped on test 8, the support hand only blast test.

[Ben Stoeger]

Something I've been wondering about. For those rare few who practice strong-hand and weak-hand-only shooting, how do you mix SHO/WHO practice into your normal practice regimen? Do you do a little bit of SHO/WHO practice at every range session? Or do you spend an occasional range session doing nothing but SHO/WHO practice? Something in between?

Normally, I lean towards option #2. Every other week or so, I dedicate an entire 200+ round range session to SHO/WHO work. Lately I've been having a lot of trouble staying focused for the entire range session. My first few drills will go well, but by the end of the practice session I've relapsed into hosing (note - this doesn't seem to happen when I practice freestyle.) So I've been thinking of switching my practice around and doing maybe 1-2 SHO/WHO drills, 50 rounds or so, at every practice.

Thoughts?

-C

I sort of lean towards option 1... mostly because I think I would get bored with option 2.

I figure if you just try most exercises or drills you do SHO/WHO you will learn something from it.

I find that working one handed really makes you focus on trigger control and helps you just plain improve as a shooter.

[JAD]

I wouldn't draw on a drawn gun.

Really? There are a lot of commands I would d.o.a.d.g. before complying with (sorry for the grammar). "get in the car." "lie down with your hands behind your head." stuff like that. That set of scenarios, which I find highly likely (within the unlikely subset of gunfights), is why I train the draw and movement offline very hard.

[JHC]

GOP, if shooting support hand only compromised my ability to practice two hand shooting, I would absolutely agree with you. However, between the SIRT pistol to practice dry firing support hand, and the Smith .22 revolver, my support hand training costs almost nothing, does not tire me out mentally since the .22 has almost no overpressure, and is easy on my hands, wrists and elbows, since the 317 weighs and recoils so little. I would even argue that the trigger control practice from support hand only shooting improves my finesse free style, but I have no hard data to back that up.

I think the reason becoming a GM, as Chris points out, requires standards with a mastery of one hand shooting, is an expert pistol shooter is expected to be expert in shooting with any hand combination. I would like to think the goal for many of us here is to shoot at that level.

To HH's point, recency of practice means a lot with support hand shooting, and I believe Todd essentially said the same thing in his training journal. I think that while a lot of rounds may have to be expended to develop support hand skills, a more modest number of rounds is necessary to maintain those skills. I would much rather keep the support hand skills than have to require them.

Finally, the support hand proficiency may be a matter of personal vanity to me. My average test score at Rogers last time was 105. I want my average to be 115, and the easiest way to accomplish that is to chop away at the 8 points, on average, I dropped on test 8, the support hand only blast test.

Personal vanity for me also. Worked the SHO/WHO from the Hackathorn Stds this morning.

[Jay Cunningham]

In my little world, a park ranger in Moab within the last two years, was involved in a gunfight, wounded, and used his support hand to save his life. Much more commonly, I know many people who have lost use of their dominant hand for a while due to injury, and it sure is nice to have skills to allow you to carry on. And, for those carrying a BUG, an appendix carried BUG on their support side surely works better with excellent support hand skills.

Murphy Strikes!

[YVK]

Really? There are a lot of commands I would d.o.a.d.g. before complying with (sorry for the grammar). "get in the car." "lie down with your hands behind your head." stuff like that. That set of scenarios, which I find highly likely (within the unlikely subset of gunfights), is why I train the draw and movement offline very hard.

Pogo, I wouldn't draw on a drawn gun as a default, first choice action. I may be forced to draw asap and take my chances, but that's different from immediate draw when one sees a muzzle end. However, I may draw after creating a distraction, or closing in and deflecting a muzzle, or whatever. Anyway, this is a different discussion altogether.

[Chris Rhines]

I find that working one handed really makes you focus on trigger control and helps you just plain improve as a shooter.

This right here. It's worth repeating - just because a drill isn't practical, doesn't mean that it is useless...

-C